"Are we prepared to promote conditions in which the living contact with God can be reestablished? For our lives today have become godless to the point of complete vacuity. God is no longer with us in the conscious sense of the word. He is denied, ignored, excluded from every claim to have a part in our daily life." - Alfred Delp, S.J.

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

“We are now standing in the face of the greatest historical confrontation humanity has ever experienced." - Cardinal Wojtyla 1976

Satellite images confirm that the oldest Christian monastery in Iraq has been destroyed by the jihadist group Islamic State (IS).

St Elijah's stood on a hill near the northern city of Mosul for 1,400 years.

That branch of Islam finds anything built to honor God or any historical figures as abhorrent and idolatrous. Anything however small is to be destroyed be they churches, museums, statues of Jesu, Mary, the Buddha, etc. Ancient manuscripts will not be spared either. One Dominican Friar was able to save as much as he could of ancient Christian manuscripts that he rescued from a very old monastery in Mosul that has since been demolished by ISIS.

I shudder to think what fate awaits ISIS should they continue on their rampage of hate and destruction. They have one goal in mind though, that of planting their black flag over the dome of St. Peter's in Rome. May the Lord of Heaven and Earth spare us that black day ... may it never come to pass.

I cannot long think on this without being overwhelmed with the temptation to hate and bitterness. This weekend I will be at New Camaldoli in Big Sur, an annual board meeting. The hermitage is so beautiful and such a refuge of peace for many, less than a hundred years old. And then St Elijah's--1400 years! I know the Vikings destroyed monasteries, Henry VIII gave them away as rewards for political support...they've long been a target for evil. St John Paul, who I and not a few others thought to be a tad apocalyptic, pray for us. Love and blessings, Fr P

How horrible! I feel our civilization is being destroyed piece by piece, and I don't like what I see taking its place. And St. John Paul didn't even see coming the specifics of what we are now experiencing, but I think he was right.

On another topic that is of interest to you: Newsweek has an article that has made me even more frightened about the vulnerability of priests to false accusations:http://www.newsweek.com/2016/01/29/billy-doe-altar-boy-sends-four-men-prison-philadelphia-rape-case-417565.html

Oh Maria - I saw that and was going to include it in this but didn't have time. I was really upset about that and what is happening to Archbishop Nienstedt. I know bad things happen and have happened but the rush to judgement and hounding is terrible. I think some of this is similar to the day care scandals several years ago - the occult molesting of kids and so on. It's omni-present.

There are points of similarity with the McMartin Preschool case, now that you mention it. The children in that case told fantastical stories but drew no skepticism from prosecutors. The young man in this case couldn't keep his story straight. I do believe there's a contemporary witch hunt against priests, a presumption of guilt. I don't like how the archdiocese paid up and it was only through the efforts of Engelhardt's religious order, which would not give up on clearing him, that the truth has come to light.

Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Iran and Iraq all have had ancient Christian communities. The Apostles established these first Christian communities as they spread the Gospel westward. The terrible fate of these people is not being reported in western media. Why? Meanwhile we are asked to be tolerant of Muslim refugees and not jump to conclusions about their motives or intentions. I am all for helping people in need, but something is greatly amiss here. Is it any wonder that angry politicians are building a following based on protecting Christianity? I recently read a Catholic blog that praises Putin as the great monarch who will save the Christian world as foretold in various millennial predictions. It makes one want to find a quiet save place away from all the bluster. Where is that?

"It makes one want to find a quiet save place away from all the bluster. Where is that?"

In our hearts and while we can, before the Lord in the Blessed Sacrament. If we can find solace in the quiet afternoon of a park or our porch, let us enjoy those moments before whatever is to come comes.

Veritatis Splendor

About Me

... My idea of what I am is falsified by my preoccupation about what I do. And my illusions about myself are bred by contagion from the illusions of other men. We all seek to emulate one anothers imagined greatness....If I do not know who I am, it is because I think I am the sort of person everyone around me wants me to be. I have asked myself whether I wanted to become what everybody else seems to want to become... only to realize that I do not admire what everyone else seems to admire. I have only thus begun to live after all... But it is very late. - Adapted from a quote by Thomas Merton

Holy Face of Jesus

Show us your face and we shall be saved. "Each soul is the object of My special love. That is why I am so grateful to those who are resourceful and bringing back sinners to Me. Keep this in mind then. I gave My life for them in the most atrocious torture, for these poor beloved ones. A humble repentance, and they are already on My heart. So speak gently to them. Speak with tenderness. A brusque remark could drive them farther away." - He and I

Prayer to St. Michael

Saint Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle, be our protection against the malice and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him we humbly pray; and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly host, by the power of God, thrust into hell Satan and all evil spirits who wander through the world for the ruin of souls. Amen.

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